From its very beginnings, child psychoanalysis has relied on observations of children at play in both natural and therapeutic settings as a source of information about the mental life of children. Play is known to be an effective means for the child to come to understand and cope with unhappiness and conflict. And the collaborative play of analyst and patient has served as an important way for the analyst to convey insights to the child. Further, these and other meanings of play have ramifications throughout adolescence and even adulthood, so that play is a crucial subject of study for all clinicians. In this book, prominent psychoanalysts explore children's play and its implications throughout life. (447 pgs)